International Women’s Day is often filled with celebrations of women’s achievements in business, science, leadership and community life. Yet it should also be a moment for honest reflection. While women have progressed in many fields, one area still struggling to keep pace is women’s health.
The theme for International Women’s Day 2026 in Australia, “Balance the Scales,” could not be more relevant to healthcare. For decades, the balance has quietly tipped away from women in research priorities, funding decisions, the interpretation of symptoms and sometimes even in how quickly women receive the care they need.
Correcting that imbalance is not simply about fairness. It is about improving the health of families, communities and the nation.
Women’s health affects everyone
Women often carry the invisible responsibility of managing health within families. They organise appointments for children, recognise early symptoms in elderly parents and juggle their own wellbeing alongside work, caregiving and household responsibilities.
In many ways, women act as the informal health coordinators of families.
When a woman’s health suffers, the ripple effect extends far beyond her own wellbeing. Families struggle, workplaces lose productivity and communities feel the impact.
For this reason, women’s health should not be seen as a narrow or specialised topic. It is a public health priority that shapes the wellbeing of entire societies.
Longer lives do not always mean healthier lives
Australia has one of the highest life expectancies in the world and women generally live longer than men. However, living longer does not necessarily mean living healthier.
Research consistently shows that women spend more years coping with illness, disability or chronic health conditions. These years often involve persistent symptoms that may not immediately threaten life but can significantly affect quality of life.
Conditions such as chronic pain disorders, migraine, autoimmune diseases, endometriosis and the complex hormonal changes associated with perimenopause and menopause can affect women for decades.
For many women, the challenge is not simply longevity. It is the ability to live those additional years with good health, independence and dignity.
Medicine has not always been designed with women in mind
A historical reality in medicine is that many clinical studies were traditionally conducted using predominantly male participants. As a result, early understanding of symptoms, disease patterns and treatments often reflected male physiology.
While medical research has improved in recent years, the legacy of this imbalance remains visible.
Heart disease provides one example. Women can experience symptoms that differ from the classic signs often described in medical textbooks. Yet women have historically been underrepresented in cardiovascular clinical trials. When research does not adequately include women, diagnosis can be delayed and treatments may not fully reflect women’s biological differences.
Recognising these differences is essential for delivering more accurate and effective care.
Medication responses can also differ
Another area receiving growing attention is medication safety. Biological differences between men and women, including metabolism, body composition and hormonal variations, can influence how medicines are absorbed and processed.
Evidence suggests that women may experience adverse reactions to certain medications more frequently than men. This does not mean medicines are unsafe. Rather, it highlights the need for research and prescribing guidelines that better reflect the diversity of human biology.
Personalised medicine must therefore include gender-informed research rather than relying solely on generalised averages.
Health funding tells us what matters
Funding decisions often reveal underlying priorities. Unfortunately, women’s health has not always received investment proportionate to its impact.
Recent analysis in Australia indicates that only a small share of government research funding has been directed specifically towards women’s health issues. Much of this funding focuses on reproductive health, leaving many other conditions affecting women under-researched.
When conditions remain underfunded, progress slows. Diagnostic tools take longer to develop, treatment options remain limited and patients often face years of uncertainty before receiving answers.
Endometriosis highlights the cost of delayed diagnosis
Endometriosis illustrates how systemic gaps translate into real-life consequences.
The condition affects millions of women worldwide, yet diagnosis often takes many years. Many women experience severe pain and debilitating symptoms long before they receive a definitive diagnosis.
These delays can affect education, career opportunities, relationships and mental wellbeing. Earlier recognition and improved clinical pathways could dramatically improve outcomes for many women.
The key message is simple: severe or persistent pain should never be dismissed as normal.
Listening matters in healthcare
Gender bias in healthcare rarely appears as overt discrimination. More often it appears in subtle ways. Symptoms may be attributed to stress, pain minimised or conditions dismissed as part of everyday life.
Recent discussions in Australia, including inquiries into women’s pain, have brought these experiences into sharper focus. Many women report feeling unheard or misunderstood when seeking care for chronic conditions.
Listening carefully to patients, especially when symptoms are complex or persistent, remains one of the most powerful tools clinicians have.
Health challenges change across a woman’s life
Women’s health needs evolve throughout life and healthcare systems must respond accordingly.
For younger women and girls, mental health support and early intervention are critical. Suicide remains one of the leading causes of death among younger Australians, highlighting the importance of accessible and culturally appropriate mental health services.
During midlife, chronic illnesses such as cardiovascular disease and cancers become more prominent health concerns. This reinforces the importance of screening and preventive care.
Later in life, dementia has emerged as a major health issue affecting women in Australia. As populations age, the need for comprehensive support systems for patients and carers will continue to grow.
Addressing women’s health therefore requires a lifelong approach rather than a narrow focus on isolated stages such as pregnancy.
Leadership gaps within healthcare
Representation within healthcare is another important issue. While women make up a large proportion of the healthcare workforce, they remain underrepresented in many leadership roles and specialised fields.
In surgical specialties, for example, women still represent a minority. Creating supportive training environments and encouraging women into leadership roles strengthens the health system by ensuring diverse perspectives guide decision-making.
A path forward
Achieving meaningful progress in women’s health requires coordinated action.
Research must more consistently include women and analyse sex-specific outcomes. Funding should reflect the true burden of diseases affecting women. Healthcare systems should prioritise earlier diagnosis and patient-centred care.
Equally important is improving health literacy. When women understand their bodies and recognise warning signs early, they are better equipped to advocate for their own health.
Technology, education and public awareness campaigns can all play a role in empowering women with accurate information.
Healthier women build stronger societies
Women’s health should never be viewed as a niche concern. It sits at the centre of social and economic wellbeing.
Healthy women support healthy families.
Healthy families strengthen communities.
Strong communities build resilient nations.
International Women’s Day reminds us how far progress has come. It also reminds us that important gaps remain.
Balancing the scales in healthcare means ensuring women are heard, studied, supported and respected within the medical system.
Progress should therefore be measured not simply by how long women live, but by how well they are able to live those years.
Dr Preeti Khillan is a Melbourne-based obstetrician and gynaecologist with extensive experience caring for women from diverse cultural backgrounds across all stages of pregnancy and birth.
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